Federal authorities indicted 10 people in South Florida for stealing more than $7 million from homeowners seeking mortgage modifications.

U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Wifredo Ferrer described the operations of FHA All Day, also known as Housing Assistance Law Center and Safety Financial Corp., as a “boiler room” that operated out of Boca Raton and Deerfield Beach in 2008 and 2009. A team of telemarketers made thousands of phone calls to induce homeowners who were behind on their payments into modifications but, after paying upfront fees, no actual services were provided, according to the charges.

The following individuals were charged with mail fraud and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud:

The homeowners were told that a team of underwriters and attorneys had already approved their loan modification and even specified how much money it would save them, according to the charges. Some homeowners were advised to stop making monthly payments, it added.

Over 2,000 homeowners paid more than $7 million in fees to the company. However, few, if any, customers received a lender-approved mortgage modification due to the company’s efforts, according to the charges.

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